Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Police question validity of sexual assault report

Prince George’s County Police are beginning to question whether the sexual assault reported last Wednesday morning is true after the 18-year-old who reported the crime refused to cooperate with investigators.

The woman, who called police from the 4600 block of Harvard Road at about 2:40 a.m., reported she had been sexually assaulted after leaving The Greene Turtle in Laurel, though she did not provide police with an exact location of where the alleged assault occurred, county police spokesman Officer Henry Tippett said. She told police she was walking down an alley when three black men followed her and sexually assaulted her.

Police do not know if she is a university student.

“It’s hard to say if this incident actually happened or not,” Tippett said. “We’re hoping if it did happen she would be willing to cooperate with us.”

If the number of false reports aren't tracked, how do you know they are "infrequent"?

The woman was intoxicated at the time of the alleged incident, Tippett said.

Again, as we see on this site, the leading factor in the majority of false accusations, is alcohol.

“She kind of refused to cooperate once the detectives started looking into this further,” he added.

Sexual assault examinations — invasive procedures used to recover any possible DNA evidence that could lead to apprehending a suspect — are usually administered immediately after assaults are reported. Tippett said the woman refused to be examined.

So, as soon as the police tried to investigate more in depth, she suddenly didn't want anything to do with it. While not conclusive proof of a false accusation, it certainly damages your believeability. When the police are doing everything they can to investigate and support your claim, refusing to assist them in the gathering of evidence doesn't help your case.

“Until we hear from her whether she wants to cooperate or not, we’re not certain if all the facts reported are true,” he said, adding the investigation is still ongoing.